Armored housing fabric



Nov. 6, 1962 a. H. FOSTER 3,061,339

ARMORED HOUSING FABRIC Filed Sept. 17. 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 .A T1' ORNEY Nov. 6, 1962 Filed Sept. 17. 1959 B. H. FOSTER ARMORED HOUSING FABRIC 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 BY mwa/SM ATTORNEY .filg Fatented Nov. 6, 19152 3,061,839 ARMORED HOUSENG FABRIC Boutwell H. Foster, Maplewood, NJ., assigner to` United States Rubber Company, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Sept. 17, 1959, Ser. No. 840,761 4 Claims. (Cl. 2-2.5)

This invention is useful as a bullet-proof fabric having a capacity to resist penetration =by moving objects such as shrapnel, bullets and other relatively low energy mis- Siles and thus protect a wearer While engaged in a combat area. This invention particularly relates to a housing fabric having shrinkable pockets or spaces which tightly enclose rigid armor panels or plates inserted therein and to a method for making the armored fabric.

Prior methods of protecting soldiers have involved the use of metal breast plates which were heavy and uncomfortable, and restricted a soldiers performance during combat. In order to overcome the disadvantages inherent in the use of heavy inexible protective apparel,

bullet-proof garments made of a housing fabric having pockets in which missile resistant panels are placed have been developed as shown in the patent to Lewis, No. 2,748,391. However, such garments employ conventional non-shrinka-ble fabrics. In this type of garment, missile resistant armor panels are enclosed in panel receiving pockets which are formed by sewing superposed fabric layers together at their edges (leaving no edge open) and thus preventing the panels from being released or lost.

One object of this invention is to eliminate the sewing steps conventionally used to completely enclose the armor panels and to provide a bullet-proof armored fabric which is simple and less costly to manufacture. Another object of this invention is to provide a bulletproof fabric having overlapping armor panels enclosed and held in xed relative position by tightly embracing pockets.

This is accomplished generally by providing a double ply fabric having face and back fabrics formed of heat shrinkable yarn woven, stitched or otherwise joined together at spaced apart rows and at spaced apart width at regularly spaced intervals to form pockets of desired dimensions and having rigid armor panels inserted in said pockets; the fabric is heat shrunken and thereby the panels are held tightly by the embracing fabric plies.

A more complete description and a better understanding of -this invention may be had by referring to the drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a top View of the fabric housing showing the fabric layers; Y

FIGURE 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2--2 of FIGURE 1 illustrating the connection of one fabric layer to the other;

FIGURE 3 shows the armor insert or panel;

FIGURE 4 shows the armor panel after it has been partially inserted in the pocket of the fabric housing; and

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view of the fabric housing showing the position of the armor insert after the fabric has been shrunken;

FIGURE 6 is a front view showing a garment made of the housing fabric of FIGURE 5.

Referring now to the drawings, there is disclosed at FGS. 1 and 2 a fabric housing 1 composed of spaced apart fabric layers 2 and 3 joined together as by stitching or weaving along substantially parallel seams -4 and a lateral connecting seam 5. Each of the fabrics may be woven on a conventional loom and utilizes thermoplastic yarns in both the warp and till directions. The housing fabric is joined together so that a space or pocket between the layers is provided. These pockets are utilized to receive an armor panel 7 which has a width somewhat smaller than the width of the pocket yformed in the housing fabric. While the shape of the panel may be varied as necessary, the panel shown in FIG. 3 has a slight curvature in the lateral direction.

Inasmuch as the fabric is to be shrunken to embrace the armor panel 7, yone or both of the fabric layers 2 and 3 is composed of heat shrinkable yarns. Further the heat shrinkable yarns in the warp and ll directions may have different shrinkable capacities. Also one layer may have a greater shrinkable capacity than the other.

In FIG. 5 there is shown a sectional View of the fabric housing after the armor panel 7 has been completely inserted and after the fabric housing has been subjected to heat so that one of the fabric layers has been shrunken. In the housing shown in FIG. 5, the back layer 2 is composed of iill yarns having a much higher capacity for being shrunken than the fill yarns of the front fabric layer 3. Therefore after the fabric housing is' subjected to heat the back layer 2 shrinks considerably. more than the fabric 3 and tends to pull the fabric layer 3 around the edge of the panel forming an overlapping section at 8. This insures 4that there is no spacing between the various pockets at which a projectile could penetrate.

In the method of making this fabric housing, a plurality of fabric layers having different heat shrinkable properties are positioned one above the other and are sewn or fastened together along parallel rows and also along lateral connecting portions. The pockets thus formed are slightly larger than the armor elements which are to be inserted therein. After the plates are inserted in the pocket the entire assembly is immersed in hot water causing the fabric to shrink; the sides of the pockets, as they are drawn together, embrace each plate tightly around three sides thereof and at the same time, each row of plates overlaps the plates of the next row along one edge of each adjacent plates.

To insure that the plates overlap in a desired manner, the fabric housing is gradually inserted longitudinally (along the direction in which the plates are to overlap) into a bath of hot water at any desired angle, preferably between 30 and 90. Since the filling yarns of the back and front fabrics are thermoplastic and have unequal shrinkage properties, the back filling yarn having the higher, the immersion of the fabric housing into the hot water causes the back filling fabric to shrink more than the front lling fabric and pull the edge of one plate over the edge of the .adjacent plate in an overlapping shingle effect.

It will be recognized by those skilled in 4the art that the amount of shrinkage can be regulated by controlling one or more of the following variables: first, the type of thermoplastic yarn that is used; second, the temperature of the heating medium (in the case described the water temperature); third, the time immersed; and fourth the dimensions of the pocket of the fabric housing. The specifications of the fabrics that have performed adequately inthe above described embodiment are listed below. The Drawing-In-Draft information is included to provide the weaver with instructions as to making the fabric.

184 ends of accises 3 e (5) Width in reed: 7%". with the spirit and concept of my invention may be made (6) Weave: Double fabric-U-shaped and stitched at by those skilled in the art.

regular intervals to form pockets, in accordance Having thus described my invention, what I claim and with weave chain. desire to protect by Letters Patent is: (7) Width of fabric: 613/16. 1. A method of making an armored fabric which com- (8) Distance between stitchings: 6%". 5 prises the steps of joining two fabrics along spaced apart DRAWING-1N DRAFT O 0 O O X Repeat X X, Repeat X Repeat O Repeat O 10 times O 5 times O 59 times X 13 times X X X ends I =30 ends =236 ends e =52 ends X=aran; O=p0lyethylene.

(1) Enter lst 8 ends in one dent, the remainder 4 ends substantially parallel rows and along a single row subperdent. stantially perpendicular to said rows so as to form adja- (2) Enter3 ends per dent. .,0 cent pockets between said fabrics, at least one of said (3) EnterZ ends per dent. e fabrics having heat-shrinkable yarns extending substan- (4) Enter 2 ends per dent. tially parallel to said single row, inserting plates of a WEAVE CHAIN lesser width than the distance between adjacent spaced apart rows into said pockets, and heating said fabric to shrink said shrinkable yarns to draw said fabrics into tight engagement with said plates and to position said plates relative to one another.

2. A method of making an armored fabric which coinprises the steps of joining two fabrics along spaced apart substantially parallel rows so as to form adjacent spaces between said fabrics, at least one of said fabrics having heat-shrinkable yarns extending transversely of said fagigvlaebreelgleaewt Svlegglelaggerg spaced apart rows, inserting plates of a lesser width than housin f b h f 1 th h f v the distance between adjacent spaced apart rows into said g a ne wget er as of examp e m e s ape ,o a 35 spaces, and heating said fabrics to shrink said shrinkable bulletproof "est as shown 1n FIG' 6 of the drawings yarns to draw said fabrics into tight engagement with XXX XXXX :2 picks for stitching I Total picks 270 per pocket No'rn: shrinkage was produced by immersion in boiling 30 Water for less than one minute.

The bullet-proof vest 9 is made by joining housing fabric Said plates. layers 10.211011? seams 11 An leeneleal beek Pleee may 3. A projectile resistant garment comprising first and be mede m e emular manner and Joined te the from pleee second fabrics, means joining said rst and second fabrics by Sheulder Straps 12 ,Whleh may be draped 'oler ehe 40 along spaced apart substantially parallel rows so as to Wearere sheulfiers as .Illustrated m FG' e' Illkewlse forni adjacent spaces between said fabrics, heat-shrinkleyers of heusmg faerie may be altae d tg a arlldeiss" able thermoplastic yarns in only said first fabric disposed hke. geimem made ef narrow webbing ere ypmvl Iig transversely to said spaced apart rows and shrinkable with exlblhty and eemfert as the layers of housing faerie respect to said second fabric, and an armor plate in each may be bent or She past eee another as the wearer moves of said adjacent spaces and held firmly in place by said about under combat conditions. For example, the layers fabcs may be ateaehed te Substantially ,Parallel web members at 4. A housing fabric comprising first and second fabrics, 01.115' one 51de e? the layers te erevlde a eppmg er Overlap' means joining said first and second fabrics along spaced plug eeeet' Slnee the feene 1S ef aelauvely eeen Weave `apart substantially parallel rows so as to form adjacent comfort 1S enhanced by lts g1. eater au Pemeeblhtly emunld 50 spaces between said fabrics, heat-shrinkable thermoplaseomers .of thepletes arid between over appmg aye a tic yarns in at least said first fabric disposed transversely theegh its proieetlle'resletaeee 1S not thereby aeee to said spaced apart rows, the ratio of shrinkage of said Smee the plates are net ng1d1y-sewn mm pleee e ger' first fabric with respect to said second fabric being greatment made of the housing fabric can be easily folded er than unity and an armor plate in each of Said adja without fear of ripping or breaking the supporting threads. h 1 r The simplicity of the fabric construction makes it feascent Spaces and e d mly m place by Sale feenes ible to protect the legs, arms, and other generally un- References Cited in the me of this patent protected parts of the body through the use of different UNITED STATES PATENTS size plates in suitably designed pockets.

While I have described a preferred embodiment in Com- 6 2,052,684 Wisbrod Sept. l, 1936 plete terms, I do not wish to be limited t0 the Specic 2,230,788 Ullendahl Feb. 4, 1941 construction set forth therein since many modifications V2,748,391 Lewis et al. n .p June 5. e 

